The Next Year In Mobile Development: Jacob Haskins

February 7th, 2014

With CES in the books and clients looking forward to what’s on the horizon with 2014 and beyond, I decided to sit down and interview some of Accella’s leading minds to se what they see coming up in 2014 and beyond.

Jeff: Generally speaking, I think we’ll start seeing and working with communication between a broader range of platforms and devices. iOS and Android are still the heavyweights in terms of mobile platforms, but the industry is definitely moving towards a point where one app or feature won’t be isolated to just one kind of device. For lack of a better phrase, everything has to work on everything – your user base could potentially have dozens of different devices, so you have to take the time to develop the product or app in such a way so that it works for everyone.

S: Do you see a trend or device that will lead the pack in 2014?

J: The newer iPhones and Android phones all feature a new kind of low-energy Bluetooth technology called Bluetooth LE – also called Bluetooth Smart or Bluetooth 4.0. It’s cheaper and uses less battery power than a standard Bluetooth connection, and we’re starting to see it implemented in a bunch of different industries – retail, restaurants, even healthcare.

S: Going off that, how have you seen Bluetooth LE used, and where do you think it will go over the next year?

J: I’ve seen it used for some promotional purposes before. Bluetooth 4.0 is commonly used for proximity-based detection – so, when someone walks by a store that they previously visited, the shop can reach out and push a notification to the person, something like “Hey, we’re having a sale today!” or maybe just a piece of content to make the person laugh. I think we’ll see a bit more of that in the year to come. We also might start seeing it in museums, guiding visitors from exhibit to exhibit.

S: What advice would you give to current and prospective clients?

J: Things like Bluetooth Smart are only the beginning – if you want to keep your service or app relevant, you need to stay on top of where the industry is going. Even if a technology trend like proximity detection isn’t directly related to your product, it’s still going to be affecting how your users interact with their mobile devices, the same mobile devices that they use to access your website or software.

Our look ahead to 2014 and beyond will continue next week with discussions with:

Sam Allen

Samuel is something of a marketing Swiss Army knife. He enjoys helping clients build their web presence and visual identity through design, SEO, and good ol' fashioned content. A photographer by trade, he's had work published in the New York Times and the New Jersey Star-Ledger.